Cytometry is a technical specialty concerned with the counting and characterization of biological cells. Often, the cells of interest are suspended in a fluid. Because a large number of cells may be present in a sample to be analyzed, automated counting and characterization techniques are desirable.
Some systems for performing cytometry use a camera or other arrangement of imaging components to make a digital image of a sample, and then use a computer to analyze the digital image to identify, count, and characterize cells appearing in the digital image. One system for performing image-based cytometry is described in co-pending provisional U.S. patent application Ser. No. 61/238,534, filed Aug. 31, 2009 and titled “Automated Cell Counter with Small Footprint and Limited Height”, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.
One form of cell characterization is the identification of live and dead cells in a sample. Techniques for improving the accuracy of determining whether particular cells are live or dead are highly desirable.